Kidney function may decline faster in black patients, according to a recent small cohort study.
The Dutch study demonstrated an increased rate of progression to dialysis among black patients with chronic kidney disease compared with white patients. Even in a universal healthcare system that presumably provides equal care to all people, black patients with chronic kidney disease had faster progression to end-stage renal disease than their white counterparts.
U.S. studies have shown that among patients with chronic kidney disease, blacks more rapidly deteriorate to end-stage renal disease than whites. Proposed explanations have included differences in healthcare system factors — like access to and quality of care — and biological and societal factors.
The study results suggest that healthcare system factors have a less influential role in explaining black-white differences in the progression of chronic kidney disease, according to the study authors.
For more information on the study, visit MedPageToday.
